An autonomous vehicle is a vehicle that is capable of sensing its environment and navigating with little or no user input. It does so by using sensing devices such as radar, lidar, image sensors, and the like. Autonomous vehicles further use information from global positioning systems (GPS) technology, navigation systems, vehicle-to-vehicle communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure technology, and/or drive-by-wire systems to navigate the vehicle.
While recent years have seen significant advancements in autonomous vehicles, such vehicles might still be improved in a number of respects. For example, some currently known autonomous vehicles are designed to operate in a slow, conservative manner that may be uninspiring to driving enthusiasts who tend to prefer a more aggressive driving experience, particularly in driving contexts and on roadways where such a driving mode would be appropriate.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide systems and methods for implementing sport modes and other selectable driving modes in autonomous vehicles. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.